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Tested y 'proved  perfect y and  ready  to  be  advertised: 
American  chemical  glass  and  stone  'ware 


Insuring  the  To-morrow 
of  the 

American  Chemical 
Industry 


New  York 

The  Literary  Digest 
1919 


Copyright y 1979 ^ hy  The  TAterary  Digest 


The  facts  set  forth  in  this  book  are  from  authentic 
sources.  They  are  the  proudest  facts  in  chemical 
history.  They  warrant  the  enlistment  of  the  Ameri- 
can people  as  a unit  to  protect  and  to  invest  in  the 
American  chemical  industry,  during  the  coming 
readjustments  in  the  world's  trade. 

The  leaders  of  the  American  chemical  industry 
will  come  out  of  the  laboratory  and  out  of  the  factory 
and  talk  to  the  thinking  public  in  the  magazines  and 
newspapers  of  America, 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 


I Introduction  11 

II  Something  to  Talk  About  14 

III  American  Dyes  18 

IV  Coaxing  Nitrates  out  of  the  Air  20 

V  Potash:  a Challenge  to  Capital  22 

VI  Sulphuric  Acid  a Commercial  Trail 

Blazer  25 

VII  The  Place  for  Acetone  in  the  Commercial 

World  27 

VIII  Setting  the  Motors  of  the  World  in  Motion  30 

IX  American  Medicinal  Chemicals  32 

X  Chemical  Adjuncts  to  the  Rubber  Industry  34 
XI  Americans  Answer  to  ^‘Royal  Berlin'^  35 

XII  Insuring  the  To-morrow  of  the  American 

Chemical  Industry  37 


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I 

Introduction 


Before  the  war  the  entire  civilized  world 
knew  that  Germany  was  the  one  place  for 
dyes,  chemicals,  and  chemical  stone  and  earthen- 
ware. The  knowledge  that  Germany  was  su- 
prenie  in  the  chemical  field  was  not  made  known 
in  six  months  or  a year.  It  was  the  culmination 
of  years  of  effort  on  the  part  of  the  great  German 
chemical  houses. 

In  the  first  place  the  German  chemical  industry 
sold  itself  to  its  own  people.  We  doubt  if  before 
the  war  there  was  a German  subject  of  average 
intelligence  who  did  not  know  that  Germany  was 
synonymous  with  chemicals  and  dyes. 

The  large  financial  institutions  came  to  the 
aid  of  the  manufacturers,  lending  them  suflScient 
capital  to  permit  of  German  dyes  and  chemicals 
being  produced  in  immense  quantities  and  being 
sold  in  all  parts  of  the  world  at  lower  prices  than 
any  foreign  made  chemicals.  The  Imperial  Ger- 
man Government  saw  the  tremendous  value  of  a 
world  monopoly  in  dyes,  potash,  medicinal  chemi- 
cals, etc.,  and  immediately  got  behind  the  move- 
ment. 

In  1914  America  was  cut  off  from  German  dyes 
and  chemicals.  What  the  American  chemical  in- 

11 


dustry  has  done  to  make  America  and  the  rest  of 
the  world  independent  of  Germany  for  dyes  and 
chemicals  is  a matter  of  history,  and  is  treated 
briefly  in  this  book. 

The  steps  the  American  chemical  manufacturers 
take  now  will  largely  decide  the  future  of  this  new 
American  industry. 

American  boots  and  shoes,  American  automo- 
biles, American  rubber  goods,  American  electri- 
cal equipment,  are  known  all  over  the  world  as 
being  the  best  that  can  be  made.  This  has  largely 
been  made  possible  because  of  the  aggressive  ad- 
vertising policies  of  the  manufacturers. 

First,  these  American  industries  sold  the  great 
American  public  on  the  idea  that  their  products 
were  the  best.  They  did  not  merely  confine  their 
efforts  to  their  particular  field — they  advertised 
in  national  publications  telling  their  message : 

To  the  executives  of  the  firms  they  wanted  to 
reach , 

To  employees  of  those  firms. 

To  the  large  financial  interests  of  the  country. 

To  the  Government  officials  at  Washington, 

To  their  own  organizations. 

To  the  thinking  public  of  the  entire  country. 

This  good  will  which  they  have  built  up  has  ac- 
complished many  things. 

It  has  forestalled  the  importation  to  any  ap- 
preciable degree  of  foreign  made  products  because 
the  American  people  believe  that  no  foreign  prod- 
ucts are  as  good. 

12 


It  has  imbued  the  American  public  with  the 
quality  of  these  products  so  that  when  they  are  in 
foreign  countries  they  talk  the  American  goods 
they  know  about.  And  the  American  people  are 
the  greatest  tourists  in  the  world. 

Just  as  these  other  industries  have  advertised, 
not  only  to  their  immediate  market  but  to  the 
entire  country,  the  new  American  chemical  in- 
dustry should  advertise,  must  advertise,  if  it  is  to 
take  advantage  of  its  wonderful  opportunity. 


II 

Something  to  Talk  About 


The  American  chemist  is  notoriously  silent; 

so  is  the  American  chemical  industry,  and 
yet  these  two  have  more  than  most  people  or  in- 
dustries to  talk  about. 

A few  figures  and  facts  show  how  the  American 
chemical  industry  handled  a crisis  in  history. 

In  1914  the  value  of  American  explosives  was 
$6,272,000.  In  1918,  it  is  $400,000,000. 

To  make  this  industry  grow  to  its  present  pro- 
portions, to  protect  the  American  soldiers  in  the 
field,  innumerable  chemicals  had  to  be  produced 
in  record  breaking  quantity. 

Before  the  war  there  was  practically  no  phenol 
industry.  For  war  purposes,  in  1917,  15  plants 
produced  $23,715,805  worth  of  phenol,  most  of 
it  synthetically  and  from  American  made  benzol. 

Sulphuric  acid  production  doubled,  the  mining 
engineer  aiding  the  chemical  industry  by  increas- 
ing sulphur  and  pyrites  in  proportion  to  the  huge 
demand. 

A new  synthetic  ammonia  industry,  a new  nitric 
acid  industry,  appeared  in  the  twinkling  of  an  eye. 

Five  million  dollars  worth  of  monochlorbenzol 
was  produced  in  1917,  by  eight  American  firms. 
This  chemical  is  purely  a product  of  wartime  and 
14 


never  was  manufactured  in  the  United  States  in 
bulk  before. 

Mercury  for  the  manufacture  of  fulminates  in- 
creased in  production  100%. 

From  unusual  sources  benzol  and  toluol,  pro- 
duced in  negligible  amount  before  the  war,  began 
to  appear  in  large  quantities  for  use  in  munition 
making. 

Acetone,  necessary  to  the  navies  of  the  world 
for  making  the  explosive  cordite,  and  essential  to 
the  air  forces  for  use  in  airplane  dopes,  appeared 
from  four  unique  processes  developed  since  the 
war.  Such  quantities  of  acetone  as  are  now  in  use 
have  never  been  known  before. 

Poison  gases  were  a brand  new  problem.  How 
to  produce  phosgene  and  mustard  gas  with  which 
to  talk  German  to  Germans,  involved  difficulty 
and  danger.  The  process  of  manufacture  and  the 
figures  are  necessarily  secrets. 

Phosphorus  was  wanted  for  incendiary  bombs, 
barium  and  strontium  nitrates  for  rockets. 

Of  each  and  every  one  of  these  chemicals  the 
nation  stood  in  need.  In  record  time,  the  chemi- 
cal industry  produced  them. 

There  were  many  complications  in  production, 
impossible  to  foresee.  These  have  been  success- 
fully met  and  their  mastery  means  much  to  the 
chemical  industry  of  the  future. 

In  working  out  reactions  with  unskilled  labors 
in  factories  running  at  full  speed  in  order  to 
maintain  the  upkeep  of  supplies  of  munitions,  the 

15 


first  years  of  munition  making  were  disastrous. 
The  cases  of  poisoning  in  twenty  eight  industrial 
plants  in  1916  came  to  2,507.  The  chemical  in- 
dustry was  called  to  time  by  industrial  investiga- 
tors, and  showed  great  ingenuity  in  revising  its 
processes. 

Now  that  the  war  is  won,  the  gas  masks  which 
saved  our  soldiers  in  France  may  save  from  indus- 
trial poisoning  all  workers  in  dangerous  chemi- 
cals. 

All  of  these  things  are  worth  talking  about,  now. 
But  there  is  one  fact  more.  Chemicals  produced 
for  munition  making  need  markets  now. 

Articles  of  commercial  value  can  be  made,  are 
being  made,  from  most  of  them. 

The  dynamite  that  destroyed  a German  trench 
can  clear  an  American  farm. 

The  phenol  used  for  making  picric  acid  will 
soon  be  used  in  dyes,  in  photographic  developers, 
in  medicinals,  flavors,  and  perfume  materials,  in 
plastic  insulating  materials,substitutes  for  shellac, 
and  other  natural  gums  and  resins,  etc. 

Benzol  and  toluol  used  for  explosives  will  make 
dyes,  and  intermediates  from  which  dyes,  me- 
dicinals, and  other  compounds  of  great  value  and 
in  great  numbers  will  be  made  in  peace  times. 
The  remaining  benzol  and  toluol  will  be  used  for 
motor  fuel. 

Monochlorbenzol  can  be  used  for  making  very 
fast  dyes,  valuable  for  depth  of  color  and  cheap- 
ness . 


16 


A use  for  American  ex'plosives  far  too  little  known 


Mercury  will  return  to  medicinals  and  many 
other  peace  time  uses. 

Acetone  will  make  plain  varnish. 

Nitric  and  sulphuric  acid,  respectively,  will 
now  find  many  peace  time  uses,  especially  in 
the  chemical  industry  of  which  they  form  a most 
important  part. 

For  the  sake  of  adjusting  the  market  for  these 
now,  manufacturers  of  explosives  are  already  ad- 
vertising. There  is  a place  in  the  pages  of  non- 
technical periodicals  for  every  subsidiary  indus- 
try. 

The  day  will  come  soon,  when,  beside  the  mag- 
neto, and  the  motor  truck,  “Sulphuric  Acid, 
C.P.”  and  many  another  product  of  the  Ameri- 
can chemical  industry  will  adorn  the  advertising 
section  of  modern  magazines,  to  the  enlighten- 
ment of  the  investor  of  capital,  of  the  producer 
whose  efficiency  it  will  increase,  of  the  workman 
whose  advantage  it  affects,  and  to  the  best  inter- 
est of  the  American  chemical  industry. 


17 


Ill 

American  Dyes 


IF  the  chemicals  used  in  explosives  during  the 
war  are  something  to  talk  about,  so  are  Amer- 
ican dyes. 

In  1914  there  were  five  manufacturers  of  dye 
stuffs  in  America.  Today  there  are  81  established 
manufacturers  of  coal  tar  dyes,  and  118  firms 
manufacturing  intermediates. 

Dye  imports  from  Germany  in  1914  were  worth 
$5,965,537.  In  1918  America  imported  from 
Switzerland  and  the  United  Kingdom,  $97,828 
worth  of  coal  tar  dyes,  the  only  considerable 
import. 

The  American  dye  industry  in  1914  made  a 
very  small  fraction  of  American  dye  needs  with 
foreign  materials,  and  had  neither  crudes  nor 
intermediates  to  speak  of.  Today  the  American 
dye  industry  is  meeting  practically  all  American 
requirements,  and  now  that  all  the  necessary 
chemicals  are  freed  from  use  in  explosives — 
toluol  being  a necessary  adjunct  to  the  dye  indus- 
try— all  the  requirements  will  be  made. 

The  American  dye  industry  in  1918  represents 
an  investment  of  $250,000,000. 

Not  only  is  this  new  industry  supplying  Amer- 
ica, but  it  is  already  exporting  dye  stuffs  to  Ger- 
many’s old  clients. 

18 


Are  these  women  doubting?  Or  do  they  know  that 
fast  American  dyes  are  here? 


To  Spain,  France,  Mexico,  Argentine,  Brazil 
and  British  India,  America  exported  in  1918 
$8,227,576  worth  of  dye  stuffs.  This  is  more  than 
the  pre-war  imports  in  value,  but  not  in  tonnage, 
nor  in  the  variety  of  dyes. 

The  American  dye  industry  is  taking  its  own 
time  in  producing  variety,  having  satisfactorily 
met  all  principal  color  needs.  Fast  acid  dyes  for 
wool,  and  vat  dyes  for  cotton,  were  the  first  ones 
we  had  to  make,  and  they  have  been  easily  made. 
The  experimental  stages  are  entirely  over,  when 
careless  and  ignorant  use  of  the  dyes  by  some 
American  consumers  started  the  rumor  that 
American  dyes  were  unreliable. 

German  propaganda  against  American  dyes  was 
particularly  vicious.  Given  adequate  publicity, 
American  dyes  will  become  a household  word  for 
excellence  and  reliability. 

Germany  did  more  than  discredit  American  dyes 
by  spreading  rumors . A syndicate  of  seven  power- 
ful German  firms  now  exists  for  the  express  pur- 
pose of  underselling  American  dyes. 

American  textiles,  American  leather,  American 
paper  industries , are  satisfied  with  American  dyes . 
German  dyes  must  find  a market  elsewhere. 

With  the  coming  readjustments  in  trade, 
American  dyes  should  be  heralded  all  over  the 
world  as  should  American  made  medicinals  and 
American  made  perfumery  materials,  also  prod- 
ucts of  coal  tar. 


19 


IV 

Coaxing  Nitrates  Out  of  the  Air 

The  American  chemical  industry  is  solving  the 
problem  of  nitrates  as  brilliantly  as  the  prob- 
lem of  explosives  and  dyes . 

America  imported  normally  more  than  500,000 
tons  of  sodium  nitrate  from  Chili.  Since  the  war 
the  need  for  nitrates  has  become  so  urgent  that  in 
addition  to  this  import  from  Chili,  which  could 
not  be  sufficiently  increased  due  to  transporta- 
tion difficulties,  America  is  creating  a tremendous 
domestic  source  for  nitrate. 

The  Air  Nitrates  Corporation,  appointed  by 
the  Government  to  build  and  operate  a plant  at 
Muscle  Shoals,  Florence,  Alabama,  at  a cost  ex- 
ceeding $50,000,000,  will  produce,  in  1919, 110,- 
000  tons  of  nitrates  from  the  air. 

In  1919,  America  will  transform  sufficient  nitro- 
gen to  equal  509,000  tons  of  nitrate,  which  is 
300%  more  than  that  produced  before  the  war, 
and  50,000  tons  of  which  will  be  made  by  the  so- 
called  ‘‘arc  process,”  in  which  the  oxygen  and 
nitrogen  of  the  atmosphere  are  brought  into 
chemical  combination  directly  by  the  intense 
heat  of  the  electric  arc. 

This  new  process,  a triumph  of  the  chemical 
industry,  has  developed  remarkably  since  1914. 
20 


Air,  water  and  electric  power  are  the  only 
essentials  beside  ordinary  labor. 

From  electrochemical  plants,  plus  coke  oven 
plants,  nitric  acid  and  ammonium  nitrate  will  be 
available  in  quantities  and  at  prices  hitherto  un- 
known. 

Nitric  acid  has  been  in  as  great  demand  as 
nitrates.  The  explosive  makers  used  it  in  such 
enormous  quantities  that  the  production  in  Amer- 
ica had  increased  900%  by  the  end  of  the  war. 

It  has  been  produced  from  the  air,  from  nitrate 
of  soda  plants,  from  ammonia  oxidation  plants, 
with  such  success  that  now  that  the  war  is  won 
the  market  must  be  widened  beyond  belief. 

Over  80%  of  the  present  nitric  acid  producing 
capacity  now  awaits  the  decision  of  America  to 
use  it,  or  lose  it. 

American  nitrates,  and  nitric  acid  for  peace 
time  uses,  should  be  blazoned  upon  page  after 
page  of  representative  American  magazines . 


21 


V 

Potash:  A Challenge  to  Capital 


HE  farmer  who  buys  American  nitrates  will 


JL  buy  American  potash,  too,  and  the  Ameri- 
can chemical  industry  will  supply  him. 

America  needs,  for  fertilizer,  from  300,000  to 

600.000  tons  of  potash  a year,  if  she  is  to  raise  the 
enormous  crops  on  which  the  continuance  of  her 
agricultural  supremacy  depends . 

Almost  the  entire  amount  was  imported  from 
Germany  before  the  war.  The  mines  in  Stassfurt 
contain  a remarkable  natural  supply.  Germany 
prided  herself  on  being  potash  dictator  of  the 
world.  She  still  hopes  to  gain  access  to  the  family 
of  nations  with  potash  to  assist  her. 

The  effort  of  the  chemical  industry  has  raised 
potash  production  from  practically  nothing  to 

60.000  tons  a year.  The  industry  has,  at  the 
present  moment,  completed  investigations  which 
promise  America  the  potash  she  needs. 

Two  of  America’s  new  processes  make  potash 
available,  with  little  expense  or  labor.  Potash  from 
blast  furnace  gases  is  produced  by  electrical  precip- 
itation in  marketable  form  with  but  little  extra 
labor  and  at  the  same  time  making  the  furnace 
more  efficient . Potash  from  Portland  cement  oc- 
curs in  the  cement  dust . These  two  processes  alone 


22 


Ready  to  cooperate ^ if  American  potash  is  advertised 


should  make  America  independent  of  German 
potash. 

The  American  chemical  industry  expects  to 
obtain  in  1919, 10,000  tons  from  Portland  cement, 
and  150,000  tons  from  blast  furnaces. 

All  of  the  natural  sources  of  potash  need  tre- 
mendous capital  investment.  They  must  be  de- 
veloped, one  and  all,  to  the  maximum. 

Potash  is  recovered  from  kelp  along  the  Pacific 
Coast.  Alunite,  found  in  Utah,  yields  potash  of  a 
high  degree  of  purity.  Potash  in  small  quantities 
is  found  in  iron  ores,  in  “vinasse,”  a by-product 
of  sugar  making,  and  in  felspar. 

Searles  Lake,  in  California,  is  an  example  of  an 
alkaline  deposit  of  many  salts,  including  potash, 
in  combination.  A plant  built  there  makes  these 
salts  commercially  useful. 

Perhaps  no  other  chemical  industry  challenges 
the  attention  of  capital  as  does  potash. 

America,  with  all  its  tremendous  resources, 
should  not  rely  on  Germany  for  anything. 

The  price  of  domestic  potash  is,  as  yet,  high. 
Only  capital  investment  in  unlimited  quantity, 
the  enlisted  interest  of  all  America,  and  legisla- 
tive protection,  can  bring  down  the  price  to  com- 
pete with  Germany  when  her  industries  are  re- 
organized. 

The  place  for  publicity  in  this  important  duty 
of  all  America  to  its  new  potash  industry  can- 
not be  over  estimated.  It  has  been  suggested 
that  an  American  Potash  Alliance  be  formed  to 

23 


insure  concerted  action  in  protecting  the  new 
industry.  It  would  add  effectiveness  to  such 
an  alliance  if  an  educational  campaign  of  nation- 
wide  proportions  heralded  it  in  popular  maga- 
zines. 

Every  American  citizen  should  know  now  all 
there  is  to  be  known  about  American  potash. 
When  the  facts  are  known,  no  other  potash  will 
be  to  Americans  “just  as  good.”  The  farmer  will 
know  what  he  wants  when  he  asks  at  the  country 
store  for  fertilizer. 


VI 

Sulphuric  Acid  a Commercial  Trail  Blazer 

IT  is  said  that  a nation’s  industrial  welfare  can 
be  measured  by  its  production  of  sulphuric 
acid.  If  this  is  the  case,  America’s  present  situa- 
tion is  full  of  promise. 

Increasing  the  annual  production  of  sulphuric 
acid  from  4,000,000  short  tons  in  1914,  to  7,000- 
000  tons  in  1917,  is  the  wonderful  achievement  of 
the  chemical  industry.  The  iron  and  steel  indus- 
try, and  the  explosives  makers  would  have  been 
crippled  without  this  production  in  the  war 
emergency  i and  new  plants  have  been  erected  at 
great  expense. 

But  it  will  be  hardly  possible,  all  at  once,  to 
convert  this  tremendous  quantity  of  sulphuric  acid 
to  commercial  use  within  the  country  without  ex- 
tending the  market. 

Sulphuric  acid,  more  than  other  chemicals,  is 
fitted  to  be  a trail  blazer  in  America’s  after-the- 
war  trade  in  chemicals  and  chemical  products. 
The  enormous  war-time  consumption  at  home 
must  be  transferred  to  new  markets,  or  the  value 
of  this  industry  will  be  largely  lost.  The  chemical 
and  commercial  value  of  sulphuric  acid  will  start 
the  new  day  for  American  chemicals  in  trade. 

In  the  manufacture  of  fertilizers,  in  the  refin- 

25 


ing  of  petroleum  products,  in  the  iron,  steel,  and 
coke  industries,  in  the  manufacture  of  nitrocel- 
lulose, nitroglycerin,  celluloid,  and  in  general 
metallurgical  practice,  this  acid  finds  its  most  im- 
portant uses — all  of  which  are  international  in 
scope. 

Because  of  this  inevitably  wide  commercial  use, 
sulphuric  acid  must  be  widely  advertised.  There 
is  a place  for  this,  as  well  as  all  American  chemi- 
cals, in  the  advertising  pages  of  non-technical 
magazines. 


VII 

The  Place  for  Acetone  in  the  Commercial  World 


ETONE  and  acetic  acid,  before  the  war 


were  manufactured  in  small,  but  appar- 
ently sufficient,  quantities  by  the  distillation  of 
wood.  War  brought  about  too  great  a demand 
for  production  in  pre-war  quantities.  An  immedi- 
ate increase  in  acetone,  from  the  pre-war  output 
of  8,000  tons  a year,  to  20,000  tons,  was  called 
for.  The  demand  for  acetic  acid  was  in  even 
greater  proportion.  The  limited  time  allowed 
made  the  task  of  the  chemist  and  chemical  engi- 
neer more  difficult. 

The  American  chemical  industry  was  equal  to 
the  emergency.  New  methods  in  which  acetone 
is  derived  directly  from  the  fermentation  of 
starch  or  from  calcium  carbide  were  quickly  and 
successfully  adopted,  although  some  of  the  re- 
actions involved  are  exceedingly  delicate. 

The  present  production  is  up  to  war-time  re- 
quirements. The  explosive,  cordite,  in  use  by  the 
Navy,  depended  on  acetone  for  its  manufacture. 
Airplanes  were  all  varnished  with  a preparation 
depending  for  its  manufacture  on  acetone  as 
the  solvent,  and  cellulose  acetate,  made  from 
cotton  and  acetic  acid  as  the  body  of  the 
varnish. 


27 


The  main  source  during  tlie  war  of  both 
acetone  and  acetic  acid  was  alcohol  obtained 
by  the  fermentation  of  grain  and  molasses. 

The  cessation  of  the  war  has  released  tre- 
mendous quantities  of  industrial  alcohol,  which 
will  be  materially  added  to  by  prohibition 
legislation. 

New  avenues  of  consumption  must  be  pro- 
vided considering  the  close  connection  between 
industrial  alcohol  and  agriculture. 

The  use  of  alcohol  as  a motor  fuel  is  by  far 
the  most  promising.  During  the  war  Germany 
used  alcohol  almost  exclusively  for  propelling 
purposes,  having  no  gasolene  of  her  own  mak- 
ing. Alcohol  also  makes  the  best  anti-freezing 
mixture  for  automobile  radiators  and  the  best 
anti-carbon  liquids  for  motor  engine  cylinders. 

Numberless  other  valuable  products  can  be 
made  from  alcohol,  such  as  ethers  for  flavoring 
purposes,  solvents,  and  useful  medicinals  such 
as  aldehyd,  chloral  hydrate,  etc. 

Acetone  itself,  now  that  peace  is  here,  will 
become  a solvent  for  all  varnishes  and  lacquer. 
Acetic  acid  will  now  be  used  in  the  manufacture 
of  crude  rubber,  lacquers,  cellulose  acetate,  and 
dye  stuffs. 

The  market  for  alcohol,  acetic  acid,  acetone, 
and  allied  products,  needs  readjustment  for 
present  uses.  The  wood  distillation  industry, 
a source  of  these  products,  will  be  made  to  pro- 
duce a long  line  of  commercially  valuable  sub- 
28 


Varnish — the  ultimate  use  for  the  overproduction  of  acetone 


stances  to  take  the  place  of  the  acetone  and  acetic 
acid,  now  more  effectively  derived  from  other 
sources. 

The  only  way  to  place  all  these  products  on  the 
market  successfully,  after  the  period  of  readjust- 
ment, is  to  advertise  now. 


VIII 

Setting  the  Motors  of  the  World  in  Motion 


HE  effect  of  the  war  on  the  oil  industry  was 


J.  phenomenal.  Motor  trucks  and  airplanes 
had  to  have  gasoline;  guns  had  to  have  high  grade 
lubricating  oils;  glycerine  had  to  be  found  in  suffi- 
cient quantity  for  explosives.  The  ordinary  refin- 
ing capacity  was  unable  to  produce  gasoline  in  the 
required  amount  for  American  use,  and  for  the  use 
of  the  Allies.  Fuel  oil  for  the  British  and  United 
States  navies  could  not  be  supplied  in  sufficient 
quantity.  Great  Britain  placed  an  export  embar- 
go on  all  glycerine  producing  oils  in  1914. 

The  chemical  industries  supplied  additions  to 
straight  refinery  gasoline  in  blended  casing-head 
gasoline  and  “cracked”  gasoline.  In  1917  70,000,- 
000  barrels  of  gasoline  were  produced,  doubling 
the  production  in  1914  which  was  35,000,000  bar- 
rels. High  grade  lubricating  oils  were  produced 
by  the  chemical  industry,  notably  the  recoil  oil 
for  use  with  heavy  guns.  Crude  oil  was  success- 
fully worked  from  the  oil  shales  of  the  west. 
These  oils  and  gasoline  added  to  the  toluol  and 
benzol  used  for  explosives  are  now  set  free,  mak- 
ing America  literally  able  to  set  the  motors  of  the 
world  in  motion. 


30 


The  quantity  of  fuel  oil  and  other  oil  products 
affects  a wide  variety  of  industries. 

All  America  must  know  the  value  and  uses  of 
these  oils  and  oil  products.  Advertising  will  be 
essential  to  properly  distribute  this  enormous 
output  after  the  trade  adjustments. 

Advertisements  of  the  new  fuel  oils  ^ especially 
benzol  and  toluol,  are  as  clearly  indicated  for 
the  pages  of  popular  American  magazines  as  the 
advertisements  already  there  of  the  motors  these 
oils  will  affect. 


IX 

American  Medicinal  Chemicals 


HE  problem  of  medicinal  chemistry  was  com- 


i plicated  by  the  fact  that  formulae  consid- 
ered essential  to  American  medicines  were  in  many 
cases  controlled  by  German  chemists . These  have 
been  successfully  replaced  and  the  way  to 
rational  expansion  of  this  very  important  branch 
of  chemical  industry  is  thus  cleared. 

American  made  synthetic  medicinals  for  what- 
ever purpose  used — antipyretics,  antiseptics,  an- 
aesthetics , etc . , should  be  made  thoroughly  known 
in  every  American  household,  and  throughout 
the  world.  American  made  photographic  chemi- 
cals, closely  allied  to  these,  and  at  present  pro- 
duced in  enormous  quantities,  must  also  be 
brought  before  the  pubic  directly  by  means  of 
advertising. 

Medicinals  should  be  always  plentiful  and 
within  the  reach  of  all.  The  chemical  industries 
that  have  expanded  so  remarkably  since  the 
war  must  make  it  impossible  for  Germany  to 
find  a loophole  in  medicinals  through  which  to 
return  to  her  pre-war  dictatorship  in  this  or 
other  fields. 

The  American  })ublic  should  feel  the  ability  of 


32 


Advertising  will  assist  in  creating  adequate  markets  for 
American  sulphuric  acid 


the  American  chemical  industry  to  safeguard  all 
commercial  interests  that  chemistry  can  touch. 

Medicinals  from  overseas  are  bound  to  appear 
as  soon  as  internal  Germany  is  organized  to  com- 
pete with  those  the  chemical  industry  in  America 
can  produce.  Never  was  there  a more  appropriate 
time  for  American  medicinal  chemicals  to  get  their 
message  before  the  American  public. 


X 

Chemical  Adjuncts  to  the  Rubber  Industry 


ARious  unusual  uses  have  appeared  for  the 


V chemical  industry  in  connection  with  rub- 
ber . Antimony , used  in  the  manufacture  of  rubber , 
was  formerly  imported  from  England.  American 
antimony  is  now  to  be  had.  Barytes  for  filler  in 
the  rubber  industry  was  cut  off  by  the  war.  Anti- 
mony sulphide  was  not  to  be  had  in  this  country. 
In  addition  to  American  antimony,  American 
barytes  has  been  discovered.  Southern  deposits 
have  been  opened  and  three  grades  of  domestic 
barytes  developed. 

Red  iron  oxide  is  used  with  success,  replacing 
mercury  sulphide  for  coloring  inner  tubes.  It  is 
found  to  be  less  expensive  and  lighter. 

The  rubber  industry  has  been  making  only  war 
time  necessities,  and  was  assisted  in  this  work  by 
the  American  chemical  industry.  The  develop- 
ment of  these  chemical  adjuncts  to  the  rubber  in- 
dustry is  important,  affecting,  as  it  does,  Ameri- 
can chemical  independence. 


34 


XI 

America's  Answer  to  Royal  Berlin" 


SINCE  the  war,  the  development  of  glassware, 
stoneware,  and  ironware,  for  use  in  connec- 
tion with  the  chemical  industry,  as  well  as  for 
use  in  all  manufacturing  and  in  the  home,  is  signif- 
icant in  completing  American  chemical  independ- 
ence. The  industry  of  American  ceramics  had 
practically  to  be  built  from  the  ground  up. 

Before  the  war,  America  imported  from  Ger- 
many porcelain  and  glassware  to  be  used  in  con- 
nection with  all  chemical  processes  requiring 
resistance  to  extreme  temperature  changes  or  to 
corrosive  acids. 

Necessity  and  the  American  chemical  indus- 
try have  proved  that  American  clay  and  Ameri- 
can manufacturers  can  fill  American  needs  in  this 
line . High  fired  porcelains , chemical  glassware  re- 
sponding satisfactorily  to  the  severest  test,  chem- 
ical stoneware  that  resists  acid  and  heat,  and  that 
can  be  made  into  enormous  vessels,  chemical  iron- 
ware of  unusual  quality,  are  all  at  the  service  of 
American  chemists  and  manufacturers.  The 
American  Bureau  of  Standards  has  tested  Ameri- 
can chemical  glassware,  and  finds  it  equal,  if  not 
superior,  to  Kavalier  and  Jena,  the  best  hitherto 
imported  from  Europe. 


35 


From  the  glass  baking  dishes  so  successful  in 
the  home,  to  the  stoneware  crucibles  of  the  labora- 
tory, and  the  fire  brick  of  furnaces,  the  list  is 
complete.  “Made  in  Germany”  need  adorn  no 
more  essential  glassware,  “Royal  Berlin”  as  the 
hall  mark  of  excellence  in  pottery  can  continue  to 
be  excellent — for  Germans. 

The  success  of  these  products  so  necessary  to 
the  chemical  industry  will  prove  a portent  of 
success  for  still  further  developments. 


XII 


Insuring  the  To-morrow  of  the  American 
Chemical  Industry 

HEMISTRY  was  not  made  in  Germany.  Be* 


fore  the  war,  the  average  man  thought  it  was . 
The  German  chemist  was  to  him  a little  tin  god. 


Why? 


When  Germany’s  system  of  propaganda  was 
spread  broadcast,  in  every  country  in  the  world 
German  dyes,  German  potash,  German  chemical 
glassware,  stoneware,  porcelain  were  everywhere 
said  to  be  excellent,  reliable,  cheap. 

German  propaganda  as  we  now  know  it  may 
never  appear  again.  Now  that  the  war  is  over  we 
must  prepare  to  meet  the  industrial  efforts  of  a 
German  republic  or  a German  confederation  of 
states. 

The  twenty  hideous  gases  loosed  against  the 
Allies  by  the  chemical  experts  of  Germany  may 
for  years  have  an  adverse  effect  on  the  market  for 
German  chemicals.  But  a politically  regenerated 
Germany  may  in  time  gradually  remove  senti- 
mental barriers. 

Today  there  is  a just  pride  in  the  war  achieve- 
ments of  all  our  industries. 


37 


But  this  is  a mere  beginning.  For  the  American 
chemical  industry  a producing  plant  has  been 
established — an  industry  has  been  founded.  But 
the  structure,  at  present,  rests  on  war.  The  cer- 
tainty that  should  be  in  every  corner  of  the  world, 
the  conviction  that  should  be  in  every  American 
mind,  regarding  the  ability  and  permanence,  the 
range  and  versatility  of  the  American  chemical 
industry,  does  not  exist  today.  The  industry  has 
naturally  been  so  engrossed  in  preparing  to  meet 
war’s  enormous  demands,  that  it  has  not  been 
able  to  implant  this  conviction.  But  before  the 
American  chemical  industry  can  take  its  place 
with  the  older  American  industries,  it  must  ac- 
complish five  things. 

First,  it  must  sell  the  great  American  public  on 
the  fact  that  its  dyes  and  chemicals  are  better  than 
anything  else  in  the  world,  so  that  the  women 
will  not  hesitate  when  buying  a brilliant-hued 
gown  for  fear  the  dye  will  not  be  “fast,”  nor  the 
farmer  when  buying  his  potash  and  nitrates  for 
fertilizer  for  fear  they  will  not  be  as  good  as  for- 
merly. 

Second,  it  must  sell  itself  to  the  moneyed  in- 
terests of  the  country  to  insure  financial  backing 
to  expand  and  produce  suflScient  quantities  at 
prices  low  enough  to  compete  with  all  the  world. 

Third,  it  must  find  new  markets  for  the  chem- 
icals now  released  and  no  longer  needed  for  ex- 
plosives . 


38 


Fourth,  it  must  find  profitable  uses  for  the  by- 
products of  these  chemicals  which  are  now  thrown 
away  or  not  developed. 

Fifth,  it  must  develop  new  overseas  markets  to 
dispose  of  the  over-production  in  certain  lines. 

To  tell  the  average  man,  to  enlist  the  interest  of 
capital,  to  protect  new  ventures,  to  widen  the  peace- 
time market,  and  to  stifle  German  propaganda, 
once  for  all,  the  leaders  of  the  American  chemical 
industry  must  advertise. 


